Education Commons^™

I-Stem Summer Institute: An Integrated Approach To Teacher Professional Development In Stem, Louis S. Nadelson, Anne Seifert, Amy J. Moll, Brad Coats

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

The importance of STEM education to societal developments provides justification for assuring K–12 teachers are prepared to teach the related content. Inservice teacher professional development is critical to achieving the goal of enhanced student knowledge of STEM. Combining the need for increased capacity to teach STEM and the extant literature on teacher development, we created a four-day residential summer institute for 230 grade 4–9 teachers. The institute was designed to enhance the participants' content knowledge, use of inquiry for instruction, and efficacy for teaching STEM. A combination of content strands, plenary sessions, field trips and planning time were augmented by …

Career Changers As First-Year Teachers In Rural Schools, Sara Winstead Fry, Holly Anderson

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

The challenges novice teachers face as they adjust to inservice teaching are well documented. However, relatively little attention has been given to beginning teachers in rural schools who have had previous careers in other professions. We used qualitative methods to examine the professional experiences and perceptions of four career-changing first-year teachers in rural schools, seeking to identify significant issues in their professional developmental processes. Three primary themes emerged: evidence of effectiveness as teachers; mentoring career changers, and; adjustment to rural school and community. We conclude with implications and recommendations for educators working to support this unique population of educators in …

Generating Keywords Improves Metacomprehension And Self-Regulation In Elementary And Middle School Children, Anique B. H. De Bruin, Keith Thiede, Gino Camp, Joshua Redford

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

Metacomprehension accuracy is typically quite poor; however, recently interventions have been developed to improve accuracy. In two experiments, we evaluated whether generating delayed keywords prior to judging comprehension improved metacomprehension accuracy for children. For sixth and seventh graders, metacomprehension accuracy was greater for the delayed-keyword condition than for a control group. By contrast, for fourth graders, accuracy did not differ across conditions. Improved metacomprehension accuracy led to improved regulation of study.

Connecting Science With Engineering: Using Inquiry And Design In A Teacher Professional Development Course, Louis S. Nadelson, Patricia Pyke, Janet Callahan, Anne Hay, Joshua Pfiester, Mark A. Emmet

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

The engineering design process has evolved over time to be the central and effective framework that engineers use to conduct their work. Logically, K-12 STEM professional development efforts have then attempted to incorporate the design process into their work. There has been little in the STEM literature, though, of the explicit measurement of the growth in design process knowledge. Our study presents findings of significant improvements in knowledge of the design process that resulted over the course of a recent summer STEM institute and professional development program among K-5 teachers.

As more emphasis is placed on integrating STEM into the …

Enhancing Preservice Elementary Teachers’ 21st Century Information And Media Literacy Skills, Sara Fry, Sara Seely

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

This two-semester pedagogical study investigated the effectiveness of an approach to information and media literacy instruction for elementary preservice teachers. Participants were trained in and then used a systematic process of searching for, evaluating, and using journal articles and websites. Two-thirds of the Semester one participants were unsuccessful identifying relevant, high-quality journal articles and ½ inaccurately evaluated the quality of websites. After three opportunities for formative assessment were added to the instruction model in Semester two, participants proficiently evaluated websites and ¾ were able to find relevant journal articles. The results demonstrate the importance of formative assessment and the need …

Graduate School Learning Curves: Mcnair Scholars' Postbaccalaureate Transitions, Scott Willison, Emily Gibson

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

The federally funded Ronald B. McNair Postbaccalaureate Achievement Program (McNair Program) prepares first-generation, low-income, and underrepresented college undergraduates to pursue terminal graduate degrees. This study examines 22 McNair scholars’ transitions into graduate school in an attempt to identify factors that influence alumni persistence and matriculation. The participants in this study were alumni from a mid-sized, Northwestern university's McNair Program. During interviews, participants identified significant "learning curves" experienced in graduate school. Five themes, representing 14 learning curves, emerged: academic readiness, weaving a supportive web, managing the clock, being accepted, and staying financially fit. Researchers incorporated identified learning curves into an on-line …

Democratic Education Only For Some: Secondary Schooling In Northern Uganda, Philip Kelly, Stephen Odama

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

This article analyzes the effects of the political, social and cultural contexts of secondary education in northern Uganda. Specifically, the authors examine interactions between several factors with the schooling system, including

• post-colonial curriculum,
• centralized examination system,
• several decades of war and instability,
• poverty, and
• intra-national and inter-tribal prejudice and discrimination.

Informing the analysis is the fact that Uganda is a democracy and thus has certain democratic responsibilities to its children and students. To explore these issues, the lenses of democratic theory and critical theory are employed.

Perceptions Of The Nature Of Science By Geoscience Students Experiencing Two Different Courses Of Study, Louis S. Nadelson, Karen Viskupic

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

Student knowledge of the Nature of Science (NOS) is critical to their understanding of science. NOS encapsulates the tenets of how science is regarded and the heuristics by which science is judged to be valid and appropriate. The importance of NOS to science education has lead to curricular and policy development that mandate the construct be taught throughout the K-12 science curriculum. If this curriculum is effective there is an expectation that students would enter post-secondary with foundational knowledge of NOS. Our research examined the perspectives of NOS among two different cohorts of undergraduate geoscience students, one of lower division …

The Analysis Of An Unsuccessful Novice Teacher’S Induction Experiences: A Case Study Presented Through Layered Account, Sara Winstead Fry

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

Although induction support is heralded as an effective way to reduce high attrition among beginning teachers, nationwide increases in induction participation have not been accompanied by a comparable reduction in attrition rates. This inconsistency suggests some induction programs may not provide adequate support. This article presents the results of a case study that explored the experiences of a beginning teacher who left the profession despite participation in an induction program. The research question was: "Why was Stella unsuccessful in her second year of teaching?" The results are presented through the postmodern ethnographic method of layered account (Ronai, 1997). In addition …

Teaching Inquiry-Based Stem In The Elementary Grades Using Manipulatives: A Systemic Solution Report, Louis S. Nadelson, Anne Hay, Pat Pyke, Janet Callahan, Cheryl Schrader

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

Young learners come to school holding myriad conceptions about how the world works, particularly in the areas of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, or STEM.^1-3 Further, young students' conceptions are commonly based on fragmented knowledge or naïve perspectives that contribute to the importance of early exposure to and practice with scrutinizing situations scientifically.^1,3 An important part of helping children gain the skills necessary to approach situations scientifically involves preparing them to conduct scientific inquiry.³ The development of critical thinking skills and scientific approaches to problem solving should begin early in education.⁴ However, lack of elementary …

Course-Integrated Undergraduate Research Experiences Structured At Different Levels Of Inquiry, Louis Nadelson, Linda Walters, Jane Waterman

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

Enhancing undergraduate students’ preparation and interest in science careers frequently involves engagement in authentic research experiences. Traditional undergraduate research (UR) one-to-one faculty-to-student ratio is challenged by demand and cost, motivating the development of alternative approaches to offering these experiences. Embracing this challenge we integrated UR experiences into three undergraduate biology courses, each taking a different approach to engaging students. The approaches varied the amount of teacher and student responsibility, reflecting different levels of inquiry instruction; one in which students were embedded into the faculty’s on-going research; a second in which faculty provided the hypotheses and methodology and students were responsible …

Poor Metacomprehension Accuracy As A Result Of Inappropriate Cue Use, Keith W. Thiede, Thomas Griffin, Jennifer Wiley, Mary C. M. Anderson

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

Two studies attempt to determine the causes of poor metacomprehension accuracy, and then, in turn, to identify interventions that circumvent these difficulties to support effective comprehension monitoring performance. The first study explored the cues that both at-risk and typical college readers use as a basis for their metacomprehension judgments in the context of a delayed summarization paradigm. Improvement was seen in all readers, but at-risk readers did not reach the same level of metacomprehension accuracy as a sample of typical college readers. Further, while few readers reported using comprehension-related cues, more at-risk readers reported using surface-related cues as the basis …

Pedagogical Considerations That May Encourage Character Development In A Distance Education Course, Michael C. Johnson, Richard Osguthorpe, David D. Williams

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

The aims espoused by institutions of higher education often entail the development of students’ character. Rarely, however, are these character development aims connected to the unique design and delivery of distance education programs, and the research literature that explores the moral and character development aspects of distance education is sparse. This case study examines instructor and student perceptions of approaches, instructional methods, and other factors that contributed to perceived character development in a fantasy literature distance education course. The findings indicate that the instructor and students perceived myriad kinds of character development and corresponding approaches and methods for bringing about …

The Phenomenon Of Character Development In A Distance Education Course, Michael C. Johnson, Richard Osguthorpe, David D. Williams

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

Rarely are character development-related aims espoused by higher education reflected in the design and delivery of distance education programs. Further, literature exploring the character development aspects of distance education is sparse. This study finds that the instructor and students in a fantasy literature distance course perceived myriad kinds of character development related to performance, moral, relational, and spiritual character traits and strengths. This paper considers implications for character development in distance education and directions for future research.

Evidence Of Metacognitive Control By Humans And Monkeys In A Perceptual Categorization Task, Joshua Redford

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

Metacognition research has focused on the degree to which nonhuman primates share humans’ capacity to monitor their cognitive processes. Convincing evidence now exists that monkeys can engage in metacognitive monitoring. By contrast, few studies have explored metacognitive control in monkeys and the available evidence of metacognitive control supports multiple explanations. The current study addresses this situation by exploring the capacity of human participants and rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) to adjust their study behavior in a perceptual categorization task. Humans and monkeys were found to increase their study for high-difficulty categories suggesting that both share the capacity to exert …

A Systemic Solution: Elementary Teacher Preparation In Stem Expertise And Engineering Awareness, Louis S. Nadelson, Janet Callahan, Pat Pyke, Anne Hay, Cheryl Schrader

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

Research shows that most K-5 teachers are typically required to complete only minimal coursework in science and mathematics, which constrains their knowledge, efficacy, and confidence for teaching STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) content. Additionally, elementary teachers, like much of the general public, have limited comprehension about the relationship between STEM concepts and engineering fields and the kind of work and societal contributions made by engineers. Yet, elementary school is a critical time in which students develop foundational understanding of STEM concepts, career options, and inquiry learning.

To address students' STEM needs and limited teacher preparation, the Idaho SySTEMic Solution …

Exploring Social Studies Through Multicultural Literature: Legend Of The St. Ann’S Flood, Sara Winstead Fry

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

The search for literature that is high quality, high interest, written at age-appropriate levels for adolescent readers, addresses social studies topics, and presents multicultural perspectives can be daunting. Legend of the St Ann’s Flood is a novel that meets all of these goals. Its setting in Trinidad and Tobago provides the opportunity for students to learn about a country and region that are frequently overlooked in social studies curriculum in the United States. This article provides historical and cultural background information about Trinidad and Tobago, an overview of the novel, and specific teaching suggestions that integrate reading and writing into …

Analysing The Child Development Project Using The Moral Work Of Teaching Framework, Matthew Sanger, Richard Osguthorpe

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

This inquiry applies the Moral Work of Teaching (MWT) framework to analyse the psychological, moral and educational assumptions, and the contingent factors, that explain the basic features of the Child Development Project’s (CDP) approach to moral education. The analysis, it is suggested, not only illuminates the CDP’s approach, but the virtues and implications of using an appropriately complex, theoretically descriptive framework, such as the MWT framework, as a tool for understanding, comparing, developing and applying approaches to moral education.

On The Possible Forms A Relationship Might Take Between The Moral Character Of A Teacher And The Moral Development Of A Student, Richard Osguthorpe

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background/Context: The claim of a relationship between a teacher’s moral character and a student’s moral development has its roots in a rich philosophical tradition. It is a tradition that maintains that the young acquire virtue by associating with virtuous people in a virtuous community. In this way, it is assumed virtue is acquired by example and imitation. Recently, this relationship has received increased attention from philosophers of education, who emphasize the importance of the moral character of the teacher in bringing about the proper moral development of the student.

Purpose/Objective: This article is an examination of the various forms that …

Transformative Education For Culturally Diverse Learners Through Narrative And Ethnography, Aileen Hale, Jennifer Snow-Gerono, Fernanda Morales

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

This article presents a study of the effects of creating a bridge between the narrative and ethnographic methods and writing processes as a means to more effectively educate teachers of culturally diverse learners. Ten teacher-participants from a Masters of Education (M.Ed.) degree programme in Bilingual Education at a university in the northwestern United States took a sequence of courses in which instructor-researchers taught them narrative and ethnographic pedagogy, theory, and methodology. Through qualitative methods, instructor-researchers analyzed teacher-participants’ personal narratives and ethnographic case studies for generative themes. In discovering the commonalities of themes between these two methods of inquiry, the research …

Locating Supervision—A Reflective Framework For Negotiating Tensions Within Conceptual And Procedural Foci For Teacher Development, Jennifer L. Snow-Gerono

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

This manuscript presents a theoretical construct for analyzing procedural and conceptual tensions within instructional leadership for teacher development. The dynamic, multi-dimensional framework demonstrates possibilities for locating supervision as having procedural and conceptual bases. By employing the questions identified, educators place themselves within the framework focused on specific areas and located along a procedural to conceptual continuum. Identifying tensions in practice guides educators to be more reflective when engaging in professional growth. Ultimately, teachers need to become empowered to engage in reflective supervision in order to guide professional development, teaching and learning.

Educational Professionals’ Knowledge And Acceptance Of Evolution, Louis S. Nadelson, Gale M. Sinatra

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

This study sought to determine if we could identify a cadre of educational professionals with sufficient knowledge and acceptance of biological evolution to objectively evaluate the merits of the emerging discipline of evolutionary educational psychology. Members of APA and AERA were recruited to complete surveys measuring demographic characteristics, evolution knowledge (specifically natural selection), and evolution acceptance. We tested a model representing propensity toward open-minded examination of the merits of evolutionary educational psychology. Results showed evolution knowledge and acceptance, personal beliefs, academic and research experience, were key indicators of willingness to engage in objective evaluation of this new discipline. …

“Like Produces Like”: John Heyl Vincent And His 19th Century Theory Of Character Education, Catherine Ganiere, Scott L. Howell, Richard Osguthorpe

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

An examination of late 19th century writings about character development by popular educator and revered Methodist bishop John Heyl Vincent (1832–1920) sheds additional insight on early character education theory. Vincent is best known as the cofounder of the Chautauqua movement in 1874. However, his theoretical constructs for character development merit not only acknowledgment in the discipline’s official history but also further investigation and discussion by today’s scholars. The constructs identified from early writings suggest that effective character education occurs in both the home and the school and requires parents and teachers who model good moral character. This article posits the …

Putting The Comprehension In Metacomprehension, Jennifer Wiley, Thomas D. Griffin, Keith Thiede

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

The purpose of the present piece is to integrate some current theories of text comprehension with the body of work on metacomprehension, and especially the calibration of comprehension monitoring. This paper explores some important methodological and conceptual issues, inspired by current theories in the text comprehension literature, which suggest that the nature of the texts used for metacomprehension studies may be a critical, and currently unrecognized, factor that should be considered. First, we need to re-examine what we mean by “comprehension,” and how we should measure it. There are important differences between memory for text and comprehension of text that …

Understanding The Delayed-Keyword Effect On Metacomprehension Accuracy, Keith Thiede, John Dunlosky, Thomas D. Griffin, Jennifer Wiley

Curriculum, Instruction, and Foundational Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

The typical finding from research on metacomprehension is that accuracy is quite low. However, recent studies have shown robust accuracy improvements when judgments follow certain generation tasks (summarizing or keyword listing), but only when these tasks are performed at a delay rather than immediately after reading (Thiede & Anderson, 2003; Thiede, Anderson & Therriault, 2003). The delayed and immediate conditions in these past studies confounded the delay between reading and generation tasks with other task lags, such as the lag between multiple generation tasks and the lag between generation tasks and judgments. The first two experiments disentangle these confounded manipulations …